Why do Brits boil everything ?

[Lotc]

I’m European but not British. I have to say the way you guys cook (vegetables in particular) ie boiling everything) really isn’t for me. It just makes everything so bland even if you add butter and salt after. Carrots especially. Why not roast or lightly sautee in a pan with some olive oil? My husband boils everything. I’ve never seen anything like it. Why boil carrots? Same as ILs. The first time I met ILs we had poached chicken. It’s so weird to me. Is it a health thing?

What, so you you cook everything in oil? That sounds like indigestion.

You can boil veg slightly, so its still nice and crunchy, it doesn't need to be boiled to death. I cook veg in oil sometimes (with pepper, garlic - Italian style) but sometimes I want something non-greasy. My DC also dislikes stuff that is oily and has burned bits (even tiniest ones).

I would ask why some European food (Italian and French specifically) is so greasy, oily and salty.

I think it's just you/your family. I haven't boiled a vegetable in 30 years-and I don't know anyone who does tbh. The only thing I ever boil is dried pasta🤷🏼‍♀️

Green veg sauteed in butter is the best way to cook it though.

But not the healthiest. A quick blanch of asparagus then into ice water is a fine way to cook them.

All generalisations are wrong.

Including this one.

There is no such thing as “you guys” - we’re all different. My parents ran a restaurant, and the first dish I ever cooked was pork chop stuffed with cheese and herbs,

Boiled potatoes are amazing! I boil peas, sweetcorn, green beans for a minute and add butter after cooking. Delicious. I also boil whole carrots in orange juice and thyme, delicious. I steam most other veggies.

I think I'll go and do some potatoes and carrots.

Why do Swedish people hate green vegetables and put cream in just about everything?

(Based on the few I know well enough! - and obv. in retaliation for the OP.)

I always roast.

In many cultures they boil or poach chicken before marinating which personally I dislike.

Yeah unless they are Jersey royals then boiled potatoes are just tasteless stodge. Buttery mash with a spoonful of mustard on the other hand is delicious

Plenty of European countries boil everything..? 🥴

In most Indian restaurants in UK the chicken is poached before going into curry simply for dpeed

I think you just married the wrong Brit 🤷🏼‍♀️

Boiling veg doesn't necessarily result in wet, mushy food. You just encountered a bad cook.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with boiled veggies.

There is nothing uncultured about people who boil veg (or tubers or root veg).

There's a lot of snobbery on this thread.

I am British, but I love veg and love it cooked however. My mum on the other hand always said she didn't like green veg, except she always eats it when I cook it. Why? Because she grew up with it boiled to mush and then she also did the same, so she never properly tasted it before!
And don't even get me started on how grim school dinners are!

Sometimes I will parcook carrots and parsnips in a frying pan with butter, honey and garlic - generally with a roast. They're absolutely delicious. Other times, I just want a carrot to taste like carrot and not garlic and herbs.

I absolutely love roasted broccoli, but equally love it boiled till just cooked. Same with cauliflower; it's delicious roasted with spices, but sometimes cauliflower cheese in the order of the day. In fact, I also love cauliflower stirred through macaroni and cheese.

Wind your neck in and focus on your own food.

Surely that's not parcooking though? It's just cooking. 😁

Parboiling is where you blanch or briefly boil something to start off the cooking process, so the vegetable takes on a different texture and takes less time when it's then roasted.

I agree though about sometimes just wanting a carrot to taste like a carrot. Maybe that's why we have a tendency to cook and serve a lot of our veg plain in this country. We like to smother everything in rich gravy, so more flavours and more oils and more sauces on the vegetables are sometimes superfluous.

Potatoes for mashing-boiled. New potatoes-boiled. Carrots and greens- steamed. Potatoes, sweet potatoes parsnips, butternut squash, peppers, onions and many others roast. Not forgetting good old home made chips, cooked in beef dripping!

That may be true if you were not eating them just as an accompaniment but it's all about balance in a meal. The thought of everything you eat leaving a greasy taste makes my feel sick.

Roast carrots with olive oil, garlic and herbs served with grilled chicken, boiled new potatoes and maybe a green salad, lovely.

Boiled green beans and broccoli served with steak and dauphinoise potatoes, also lovely.

I steam or roast all veg. My DM used to boil everything to death but most of us have moved on from that

I don't think you can use your DH as an example of all British people.

I also make mince and tatties as you describe, my English husband loves it, and my Canadian tweens know no different (and like it). I really go out on a limb and put garlic in the mince though - my ultra-conservative Dad would be horrified if he was still with us. 😆

If there are any people in your family with digestive disorders you may need to boil some vegetables so they can easily be digested by them. This maybe why

Erm just because 1 family boils their veg doesn’t mean the whole of UK does 🤦‍♀️

Don't worry about it, just cook the way you prefer to.
BTW, how is most pasta generally cooked?